Rating: 
Summary: Living every football fan's dream
Review: A book every true football fan should read. Author Jeff Foley is allowed to spend the preseason as a member of the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League, not as a reporter hiding in the shadows but as a true professional football player. That's the rule, he is to be treated just as any other player on the team. As a rookie he receives his share of hazing but also earns the respect and support of his team mates because Jeff proves his courage, heart and his unwillingness to quit. From pregame preparation talks to post game meetings, Jeff Foley shows that there really is a special man behind each and every face mask. The reader learns that even though the players come from different backgrounds and may even be compeating for the same roster spot, a team is a unique type of family. Locker room antics, childhood memories, daily practice sessions and the games are interlaced into a "can't put it down" story.
Rating: 
Summary: Very real perspective of Arena Football
Review: A very informative and entertaining book about the inner working of an Arena Football team. Jeff puts a very positive and realistic twist on the trials and tribulations that any professional athlete goes through. Very entertaing. Thank you.Frank Haege
Head Coach New Jerey Gladiators; Arena Football League
Rating:
Summary: Behind the scenes on the playing field in arena football
Review: I was very excited to read "War on the Floor" when I heard about it. I am a big Firebird's fan, and even though I didn't know about the team when they were in Albany, there are still some players that are on the Indiana team, and they by far are the best group of guys you'll ever meet!
Jeff tells about what it was like in the everyday routine of getting up early and having to be on a cold, rainy field to practice for the team. When he first arrived at training camp, the guys weren't sure if he was for real about playing and writing about the team. As days went by, Jeff became one of the guys, and he was determined to stick with the practices and "gassers", (and you'll just have to find out what I mean by this by reading the book)! Jeff endured the pain and the joy of being on an arena football team and tells what it is like and the determination to not quit when you start something! It talks about how the team members encouraged Jeff to not quit and to keep on!
Even if you are not a Firebirds fan, I think you will enjoy the book for its sincerity, laughs and plain downright competition.
As you will see, once a Firebird, always a Firebird!! I am waiting for the 2nd Edition of the "Tales of Achmel"! Happy reading!
Rating:
Summary: Behind the scenes on the playing field in arena football
Review: I was very excited to read "War on the Floor" when I heard about it. I am a big Firebird's fan, and even though I didn't know about the team when they were in Albany, there are still some players that are on the Indiana team, and they by far are the best group of guys you'll ever meet!
Jeff tells about what it was like in the everyday routine of getting up early and having to be on a cold, rainy field to practice for the team. When he first arrived at training camp, the guys weren't sure if he was for real about playing and writing about the team. As days went by, Jeff became one of the guys, and he was determined to stick with the practices and "gassers", (and you'll just have to find out what I mean by this by reading the book)! Jeff endured the pain and the joy of being on an arena football team and tells what it is like and the determination to not quit when you start something! It talks about how the team members encouraged Jeff to not quit and to keep on!
Even if you are not a Firebirds fan, I think you will enjoy the book for its sincerity, laughs and plain downright competition.
As you will see, once a Firebird, always a Firebird!! I am waiting for the 2nd Edition of the "Tales of Achmel"! Happy reading!
Rating:
Summary: "Axel" Foley, Professional Football Player
Review: Jeff Foley has done what most every American male wishes they could do - play professional football!! In his book, Jeff puts the reader through try-outs, practice, road trips, physicals, the locker room, pre-game nerves, and most importantly, the game itself. The reader gets to "feel" what it is like to be a part of the Arena Football League. Well written, well told, and a great read! For fans of football, sports, or just good books, War on the Floor will not disappoint!
Rating:
Summary: A new perspective
Review: People often wonder what it would be like to live life over again - what they might change if they knew what they know now. I used to think that maybe I could have been more of an athlete and maybe a football player...but this book made me happy to be where I am, which is in the stands, where I belong. This book provides you a fabulous firsthand look at the life of a football player from inside the locker room and on the field. It's sometimes humorous, sometimes serious, but very entertaining the whole way through. Even though it's the Arena League and not the NFL, it's no less of an accomplishment to make it to this level of competition. This really hits home when Jeff describes one player who quit the Firebirds training camp saying that he had no idea that guys in this league were as good as they were. The opportunity for a writer to join a team in this manner to get this perspective and this story may never happen again, so if you ever thought you'd like another shot at life to become one of those guys you see on television, read this book...then join me in the stands.
Rating:
Summary: A new perspective
Review: People often wonder what it would be like to live life over again - what they might change if they knew what they know now. I used to think that maybe I could have been more of an athlete and maybe a football player...but this book made me happy to be where I am, which is in the stands, where I belong. This book provides you a fabulous firsthand look at the life of a football player from inside the locker room and on the field. It's sometimes humorous, sometimes serious, but very entertaining the whole way through. Even though it's the Arena League and not the NFL, it's no less of an accomplishment to make it to this level of competition. This really hits home when Jeff describes one player who quit the Firebirds training camp saying that he had no idea that guys in this league were as good as they were. The opportunity for a writer to join a team in this manner to get this perspective and this story may never happen again, so if you ever thought you'd like another shot at life to become one of those guys you see on television, read this book...then join me in the stands.
Rating:
Summary: Exceptional Story
Review: Someday, when the Arena Football League is grossing billions of dollars and its games are drawing millions to network telecasts, someone will revisit "War on the Floor" and ask "Gee, was it really like that?" Foley has quite elegantly placed the sights, sounds, fears, and joys of the Arena Football League into a time capsule. This is a book that will be enjoyed for years to come. "He actually played with these guys?" Yes, he did. And he lived to write about it. For all the fans that want to go behind the scenes of the Arena Football League, this book is a must-read. Foley may not have been much of an offensive specialist, but the guy can write.
Rating:
Summary: Put the Journalist In
Review: The Arena Football League (AFL) describes itself as the "50-Yard, Indoor War on the Floor." Though viewed by most fans as the minors of the National Football League (NFL), the AFL is in many ways much tougher. Most of the players play both offense and defense, they can't duck out of bounds, they always play on hard, artificial turf, and their salaries - by NFL standards - are pitiful. Jeff Foley's War on the Floor is an excellent look into this hardscrabble world of tough guys playing a tough game.
Foley, by his own admission, is not a tough guy. A scribe by profession, Foley write about the Albany (New York) Firebirds (now the Indianapolis Firebirds) not from the safety of press row but from the combat zones of the locker room, the practice fields, and the arena itself. Though he has no organized football experience himself and though slight in stature (5'8", 185), Foley convinced the team's owners to let him go through training camp as a player and try to appear in a pre-season exhibition game as a wide receiver. The story Foley tells is wonderfully entertaining.
When the 2000 pre-season workouts began, Foley was excited, anxious, and nervous, much like all the real ballplayers trying to make the squad. Then, as the double sessions intensified, Foley begins to question his own judgment and starts to worry about his health and safety should he really catch a pass in front of an angry linebacker or defensive back.
War on the Floor isn't just a football journal, however. Foley enlivens his prose with stories of his own youth and his personal life, so the reader has a real feel for this participatory journalist. He really is an average guy living out the fantasy of the average fan. One of the funniest scenes in the book occurs when Foley, along with all of his teammates, must see how many times he can bench press 225 pounds, 40 pounds more than his weight.
Foley also brings to life the stories of his colorful and hardworking teammates: "Touchdown" Eddie Brown, Mike "The Axe" Waldron, and Sean "Tusk" Tremblay, among others. Though these players will probably never cash an NFL paycheck, their love and passion for the game is obvious, and as Foley's teammates, they rally around him and his quest to make an on-field, game-time reception.
In addition to his 300 pages of stories and detailed descriptions, Foley includes 12 pages of photographs from his excellent adventure. The final photo shows a post-game Foley standing next to a fan holding a sign that reads, "Put the Journalist In." Believe me, if you're a football fan, Foley is one journalist you'll want in your library.
Rating:
Summary: Put the Journalist In
Review: The Arena Football League (AFL) describes itself as the "50-Yard, Indoor War on the Floor." Though viewed by most fans as the minors of the National Football League (NFL), the AFL is in many ways much tougher. Most of the players play both offense and defense, they can't duck out of bounds, they always play on hard, artificial turf, and their salaries - by NFL standards - are pitiful. Jeff Foley's War on the Floor is an excellent look into this hardscrabble world of tough guys playing a tough game.
Foley, by his own admission, is not a tough guy. A scribe by profession, Foley write about the Albany (New York) Firebirds (now the Indianapolis Firebirds) not from the safety of press row but from the combat zones of the locker room, the practice fields, and the arena itself. Though he has no organized football experience himself and though slight in stature (5'8", 185), Foley convinced the team's owners to let him go through training camp as a player and try to appear in a pre-season exhibition game as a wide receiver. The story Foley tells is wonderfully entertaining.
When the 2000 pre-season workouts began, Foley was excited, anxious, and nervous, much like all the real ballplayers trying to make the squad. Then, as the double sessions intensified, Foley begins to question his own judgment and starts to worry about his health and safety should he really catch a pass in front of an angry linebacker or defensive back.
War on the Floor isn't just a football journal, however. Foley enlivens his prose with stories of his own youth and his personal life, so the reader has a real feel for this participatory journalist. He really is an average guy living out the fantasy of the average fan. One of the funniest scenes in the book occurs when Foley, along with all of his teammates, must see how many times he can bench press 225 pounds, 40 pounds more than his weight.
Foley also brings to life the stories of his colorful and hardworking teammates: "Touchdown" Eddie Brown, Mike "The Axe" Waldron, and Sean "Tusk" Tremblay, among others. Though these players will probably never cash an NFL paycheck, their love and passion for the game is obvious, and as Foley's teammates, they rally around him and his quest to make an on-field, game-time reception.
In addition to his 300 pages of stories and detailed descriptions, Foley includes 12 pages of photographs from his excellent adventure. The final photo shows a post-game Foley standing next to a fan holding a sign that reads, "Put the Journalist In." Believe me, if you're a football fan, Foley is one journalist you'll want in your library.
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